If you’ve been searching for a rental lately, you’ve probably felt the heat of Australia’s rental crisis – low availability, skyrocketing prices, and dozens of hopeful tenants at every inspection. A key number behind all this chaos is the vacancy rate. But what exactly is it, and why does it matter?

I’m a long-time Australian renter, and I’ve seen how renting in Australia has changed over the years. Looking back, it’s clear that renting today is a very different experience than it was decades ago. In this post, I want to share a brief history of renting in Australia from about the 1970s to now.